Military Man with NFL Dream Receiving 'Hate Mail'

Eric Kettani, a Navy reservist, had an NFL dream, a dream he is now pursuing with the Washington Redskins. Unfortunately for him, many seem to have a problem with that aspiration.

The former Naval standout has been trying to break into the league since 2009; however, he ultimately came to an agreement with the Department of Defense that would allow him to serve 7 years doing public affairs work while continuing to pursue his dream.

For three years, Kettani was on active duty, a time which included 6 1/2 months circumnavigating South America on the USS Klakring.

Many, however, believe those three years on active duty were not enough.

When he was released to pursue his dream, Kettani began receiving “hate mail” against him for his failure to fully comply with the service he signed up to perform.

Nevertheless, he remained focused on his lifelong aspiration.

“As a child, everybody has a dream and my dream was to play football. I’m taking advantage of that now,” he said.

Redskins coach Mike Shanahan also is undeterred by the controversy and praised the efforts of his fullback. “It’s quite unusual to do what he’s done,” Shanahan has said. “To havethat type of drive [to do] what he does for the service [and] what hedoes on the football field keeps him pretty busy. He’s got a chance tocompete for a position.”